Editorial: Judd's tweet irks many, but was right call

Friday

Sep 8, 2017 at 9:14 AMSep 8, 2017 at 9:17 AM

It remains remarkable, and a tad perplexing, that law enforcement officials can ignite controversy by indicating they will do their jobs — that is, enforce the law. Yet, it is such, as Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd has discovered.

Judd stirred a nationwide ruckus on Wednesday, which continued to boil on Thursday, by announcing that some folks' port in the pending storm may be a jail cell.

Judd announced via Twitter that deputies would check the identification of those who seek harbor from Hurricane Irma at an emergency shelter in Polk County. He also tweeted, “We cannot and we will not have innocent children in a shelter with sexual offenders & predators. Period.” In another tweet, the sheriff added, “If you go to a shelter for #Irma and you have a warrant, we’ll gladly escort you to the safe and secure shelter called the Polk County Jail.”

Thousands ripped Judd on Twitter. Some of the nicer critics labeled him a “monster,” “repugnant,” “disgusting” and “deplorable.” Among them was the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, which blasted Judd for “burnishing his Joe-Arpaio-style 'tough-cop' credentials with a series of irresponsible tweets.”

The ACLU said most fugitives are sought on warrants for nonviolent or “low-level” offenses that pose no risk to others.

“Sheriff Judd’s threatening tweets send the message that these individuals must choose between facing a natural disaster without aid and shelter or going to jail over things like unpaid parking tickets,” the ACLU added. “This will endanger the lives of not only those who avoid shelters but also the lives of first responders under Sheriff Judd’s charge who will have to rescue the people he just told to stay in harm’s way.”

On one hand, if that situation arises, what do the ACLU and others think Judd’s deputies will do with such people if they must rescue them in the storm? If they are wanted for crimes, will they not go to jail anyway? As Judd told The Ledger, “There is no amnesty for violating the law. If you have an outstanding warrant and come to the shelter, we have a legal obligation to arrest you.”

On the other hand, Judd has done nothing like what the ACLU accuses him of doing. As the sheriff told reporters in the wake of the criticism, that obligation to arrest those wanted on warrants extends to wherever deputies encounter them. In this case, he’s giving registered sex offenders and fugitives from justice — and that is what they are, regardless of the offense — advance warning so they can go elsewhere. Polk is bordered by 10 counties. We have not heard yet of the others checking for criminal histories. Surely, a fugitive could find shelter in one of them during Irma.

Let’s consider Judd’s point in a different light.

The sheriff’s not referring to casting a wary eye on people from just Polk County. As Irma approaches, Polk County could very well be a destination for thousands and thousands of people evacuating from South Florida. Unless the Sheriff’s Office takes precautions, emergency management officials, relief workers and shelter volunteers will have no idea who they are dealing with. All could be upstanding citizens. But some may not be.

Last week, in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, the liberal news website Vox reported on a study by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center that found when hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit New Orleans in 2005, almost a third of sexual assaults reported during that time occurred in evacuation shelters. During those storms, Vox noted, “Shelters were the most common site of reported sexual violence.”

Imagine the reaction if a wanted crook whose identification is not checked takes refuge in a Polk shelter and afflicts mayhem on Irma-fleeing innocents, especially women or children. Think Twitter commenters and media analysts would have a few choice names for Judd then?

“Never before did I think that we’d be beat up for giving people a warning and keeping people safe,” Sheriff Judd told a reporter.

Neither did we, sheriff, neither did we.

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